Through the years, various treatment methods and additives have been proposed for altering the overall character or nature of tobacco materials utilized in tobacco products. For example, additives or treatment processes are sometimes utilized in order to alter the chemistry or sensory properties of the tobacco material, or in the case of smokable tobacco materials, to alter the chemistry or sensory properties of mainstream smoke generated by smoking products including the tobacco material. An example of an additive is a natural botanical (e.g., plant extract), which has been incorporated into both smoking and smokeless tobacco products, such as those disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,991,596; 8,434,496; 8,991,403; 8,994,072; 9,155,321; and 9,155,334; and US Publication. Nos. 2015/0068544, US 2015/0068545, and US 2015/0101627.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,991,596 is directed to a smoking article that includes a short, combustible, carbonaceous fuel element in a heat exchange relationship with a substrate carrying glycerin, tobacco extract, and a portion of an essential oil gland bearing plant. For example, fragments of cinnamon bark, lovage root, chamomile flowers or cardamon physically separate from the fuel element provide for a controlled release of a flavor profile during use of the smoking article. Heat provided by the burning fuel element acts to release essential oils from the glands to provide a complex flavor and aroma profile. The smoking article is capable of providing the user with many of the pleasures of smoking by heating but not necessarily burning tobacco.
U.S. Pat. No. 8,434,496 is directed to a method of thermally processing a tobacco material, the method including (i) mixing a tobacco material, water, and an additive selected from the group consisting of lysine, glycine, histidine, alanine, methionine, glutamic acid, aspartic acid, proline, phenylalanine, valine, arginine, di- and trivalent cations, asparaginase, saccharides, phenolic compounds, reducing agents, compounds having a free thiol group, oxidizing agents, oxidation catalysts, plant extracts, and combinations thereof, to form a moist tobacco mixture; (ii) heating the moist tobacco mixture at a temperature of at least about 60° C. to form a heat-treated tobacco mixture; and (iii) incorporating the heat-treated tobacco mixture into a tobacco product. Heat-treated tobacco composition prepared according to the method are also provided, such as heat-treated smokeless tobacco composition comprising a tobacco material, water, flavorant, binder, and filler, the heat-treated smokeless tobacco composition having an acrylamide content of less than about 2000 ppb.
U.S. Pat. No. 8,991,403 is directed to a method of thermally processing a tobacco, the method including the steps of (i) mixing a tobacco material, water, and an additive selected from the group consisting of lysine, glycine, histidine, alanine, methionine, glutamic acid, aspartic acid, proline, phenylalanine, valine, arginine, di- and trivalent cations, asparaginase, saccharides, phenolic compounds, reducing agents, compounds having a free thiol group, oxidizing agents, oxidation catalysts, plant extracts, and combinations thereof, to form a moist tobacco mixture; (ii) heating the moist tobacco mixture at a temperature of at least about 60° C. to form a heat-treated tobacco mixture; and (iii) incorporating the heat-treated tobacco mixture into a tobacco product. Heat-treated tobacco composition prepared according to the method are also provided, such as heat-treated smokeless tobacco composition comprising a tobacco material, water, flavorant, binder, and filler, the heat-treated smokeless tobacco composition having an acrylamide content of less than about 2000 ppb.
U.S. Pat. No. 8,994,072 is directed to a method of preparing a tobacco material for use in a smoking article, including (i) mixing a tobacco material, water, and an additive selected from the group consisting of lysine, glycine, histidine, alanine, methionine, glutamic acid, aspartic acid, proline, phenylalanine, valine, arginine, di- and trivalent cations, asparaginase, saccharides, phenolic compounds, reducing agents, compounds having a free thiol group, oxidizing agents, oxidation catalysts, plant extracts, and combinations thereof; (ii) heating the mixture; and (iii) incorporating the heat-treated mixture into a smoking article as a smokable material. A smoking article in the form of a cigarette is also provided that includes a tobacco material pre-treated to inhibit reaction of asparagine to form acrylamide in mainstream smoke. Upon smoking, the smoking article is characterized by an acrylamide content of mainstream smoke that is reduced relative to an untreated control smoking article.
U.S. Pat. No. 9,155,321 is directed to a meltable smokeless tobacco composition configured for insertion into the mouth of a user. The smokeless tobacco composition includes a tobacco material and a lipid having a melting point of about 36° C. to about 45° C. An associated process is also provided. The process includes melting a lipid having a melting point of about 36° C. to about 45° C. to form a molten lipid composition, mixing a tobacco material with the molten lipid composition to form a molten smokeless tobacco composition, and cooling the molten smokeless tobacco composition to form a solidified smokeless tobacco composition.
U.S. Pat. No. 9,155,334 is directed to a method of modifying the content of certain bacteria in uncured tobacco material, the method including contacting an uncured tobacco material with a treatment solution, wherein the treatment solution is selected from the group consisting of: (i) a solution comprising salt, sugar, or a combination thereof; (ii) a solution comprising one or more enzymes; and (iii) a solution comprising one or more probiotics, wherein said contacting provides a treated tobacco material having a reduced total bacterial content following harvest. In certain embodiments, the treated tobacco material is subsequently cured, and can optionally be fermented. Smoking articles and smokeless tobacco products including such treated tobacco materials are also provided.
US Publication No. 2015/0068544 is directed to a smokeless tobacco product configured for insertion into the mouth of a user of the product, the smokeless tobacco product including a tobacco material mixed with at least one botanical material, wherein the botanical material comprises at least about 0.1% of the total dry weight of the smokeless tobacco product. One exemplary product is in the form of a snus product contained within a water-permeable pouch, which includes at least about 50% of a pasteurized and fermented particulate tobacco material, based on the total dry weight of the smokeless tobacco product, and a botanical material in particulate form.
US Publication No. 2015/0068545 is directed to a smokeless tobacco product configured for insertion into the mouth of a user of the product, the smokeless tobacco product including a dissolvable or meltable base composition admixed with a tobacco material and a botanical material, wherein the botanical material is present in an amount of at least about 0.1% of the total dry weight of the smokeless tobacco product.
US Publication No. 2015/0101627 is directed to a smokeless tobacco pastille configured for insertion into the mouth of a user. The smokeless tobacco pastille may include (i) a tobacco material present in an amount of less than about 40 dry weight percent, based on the total dry weight of the pastille; (ii) at least one natural gum binder present in an amount of at least about 25 dry weight percent; and (iii) a plurality of sugar alcohols present in a total amount of at least about 40 dry weight percent, the predominant component of the plurality of sugar alcohols being isomalt or erythritol, wherein the shape of the smokeless tobacco pastille is moldable in the oral cavity.
Some botanical materials include pentacyclic triterpenoid acids including betulinic acid, oleanolic acid, and ursolic acid, which have been reported to have beneficial health properties such as antiviral and anti-inflammatory properties. Additionally, it has been reported that pentacyclic triterpenoid acids in vitro are capable of inhibiting the development of various cancer cell types. These pentacyclic triterpenoid acids can be found in rosemary. As such, it would be advantageous to have a smoking product that may have the beneficial health properties of rosemary, but which does not significantly alter the taste of the smoking product.